New Delhi, June 20

For the CRPF, the killing of 25 personnel by Naxalites in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district does not qualify as the “human right violation” of the slain jawans, judging by the paramilitary force’s reply to a Right to Information (RTI) query.The CRPF gave this response while refusing to share its inquiry report into the incident with an RTI applicant. Human rights activist Venkatesh Nayak had sought the report, saying the massacre violated the human rights of those killed in April this year. The force is exempted from making disclosures under the RTI Act unless the information sought pertains to allegations of human right violations and corruption.Citing the exemption clause, the CRPF in its response said: “In the instant matter, there appears to be no violations of human rights as well as facts of the case do not attract allegations of corruption. Moreover, your application does not make any reference to such allegations. Hence this department is not liable to provide any information in this regard to your under RTI Act-2005.”The CRPF also said the report also could not be shared because it contained operational details.Nayak said the murderous attack by the ultras amounted to a violation of human rights by “non-state actors” and by denying this “reality”, the CRPF may be doing injustice to its personnel. “Every time such an attack occurs, self-appointed conscience-keepers of the ‘nation’ and advocates of a belligerent brand of ‘nationalism’…  accuse right advocates of not raising their voice against the violation of the rights of security personnel,” Nayak said. —

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Amarinder announces loan waiver bonanza for farmers

The announcement is based on an interim report submitted by an expert group headed by Dr T Haque, former chairman of Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), set up in April 2017 to assess the quantum of debt and ways and means for its waiver. The loan-waiver promise was part of the Congress manifesto released during the assembly polls.

The CM announced to waive the entire loan of families of farmers who committed suicide in the state, besides increasing the ex gratia for suicide-affected families to ₹ 5 lakh from the existing ₹ 3 lakh.

GIVE UP POWER SUBSIDY, CM TO RICH FARMERS

Amarinder Singh, while reiterating that the free power subsidy would continue, asked the well to do farmers to give up their subsidy voluntarily.

CHANDIGARH:In a scathing indictment of fiscal management during the Akali-BJP rule of 10 years, the Congress government, in a white paper tabled in the assembly on Monday, said the state is in the “tight grip of a debt trap” and its finances in a “free fall”.

KESHAV SINGH/HTFinance minister Manpreet Singh Badal, who tabled two white papers in the House, with his cabinet colleague Navjot Singh Sidhu in Chandigarh on Monday.Painting a grim picture a day before the first budget of the new government, the white paper on state finances – one of the two tabled by finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal – blamed lack of fiscal prudence and indiscriminate raising of loans, especially unproductive borrowings and ‘book-cooking’, for the debt trap.

As an almost empty state treasury is a huge worry for Capt Amarinder Singh-led government, the white paper has political undertones, indicating how much to expect from the budget.

The paper puts the outstanding debt, power bonds, loans of state entities and loan to cover cash credit limit gap at ₹1.87-lakh crore, as on March 31, 2017. If the state guarantees are added, it jumps to ₹2.08-lakh crore.

“The state finances are in a free fall, as the government revenue has not kept pace with its expenditure, leading to ballooning revenue and fiscal deficits,” reads the 143-page white paper, summarising the fiscal woes. “A high percentage of expenditure is already committed, leaving hardly any fiscal space. It is inflicted with structural imbalance and, if no corrective measures are taken, it will take a heavy toll on the future development of the state.”

EMPTY TREASURY WORRIES CAPT GOVT

The paper notes that apart from meeting the day-to-day challenge of keeping the treasury afloat for the routine administrative expenditure, the state is constantly facing grave paucity of resources for financing the capital expenditure. “The situation is alarming.”

The Congress came to power with the promise of farm debt waiver, unemployment allowance, mobile phones, jobs and a lot of other cash-guzzling freebies.

While chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh announced debt write-off after the two white papers were tabled, his government lacks the financial wiggle room to implement most of its promises and is expected to stagger them.

In the past, too, the governments in states of Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Kerala have presented white papers to bring out fiscal mismanagement of their predecessors and to defer or stagger implementation of their promises.

REVENUES MORTGAGED, PROPERTIES PLEDGED

Another disturbing feature of fiscal management was the Akali-BJP regime’s penchant for abusing government entities — such as Punjab Infrastructure Development Board (PIDB), Rural Development Board (RDB) and Punjab Urban Development Authority (PUDA) — to indiscriminately raise loans by mortgaging their future revenues or by hypothecating immovable properties at their disposal.

The three undertakings raised loans to the tune of ₹12,643 crore. A part of this debt also flowed into the state treasury as “informal debt”, which stands at ₹4,435 crore.

“Raising loans in this manner is nothing short of selling the family silver to run your kitchen. They provided a handy window to fund the populist programmes of the then ruling dispensation,” the white paper points out.

The loans were raised as an off-budget exercise and totally escaped due scrutiny, legislative approval and audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) . The government has hinted at carrying out a special audit to ascertain whether the loans were properly accounted for and utilised in accordance with their statutory mandate.

GROWTH BELOW ALL-INDIA AVERAGE

The state’s financial decline, according to the paper, has seamlessly merged into its economic decline, making it one of the slow growing states of the country.

During the last 10 years, the growth rate of Punjab remained lower than the all-India average, except in 2013-14, when it was slightly higher. The growth rate was as low as 4.2% against 7.5% at all-India level in 2014-15.

The average growth of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) recorded from 2006-07 to 2015-16 was 6.37%, which was lower than the average growth recorded by Goa (10.68%), Bihar (10.08%), Gujarat (9.70%), Madhya Pradesh (8.54%), Haryana (8.30%), Maharashtra (7.71%) and Tamil Nadu (7.66%). Also, the state, which held the top position in per capita income for a long time, has slid to the seventh position among the major states.

Now, free education for girls from nursery to PhD

CHANDIGARH: Chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday announced free education for girls from nursery to the doctorate level in government institutions of Punjab. He was speaking in the Vidhan Sabha.

HT FILEChief minister Capt Amarinder Singh announced a pilot project to promote English in government schools.The CM said the government will introduce free textbooks to all students of government schools, and will introduce preprimary classes (nursery and LKG) in government schools from the next academic session as part of the reforms it has initiated in the state, which will also see free internet service in 13,000 primary schools and all 48 government

colleges.

He also announced a pilot project to promote English in government schools from next month, besides opening of five new colleges. LOKPAL BILL: Amarinder also announced a new Lokpal Bill, which will bring not only the ministers and all bureaucrats under in its ambit, but also the CM

NO SYL CANAL: The CM reiterated his government’s stand on the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal, saying he will not allow the canal to be constructed as the state had no surplus water to share with others. POWER TARIFF: Amarinder also announced a freeze on

power tariff for all consumers, including new and existing industries, at ₹5 per unit

TRUCK UNIONS: 134 unions of transporters would cease to exist. The CM said a new law to be introduced soon to give an alternative policy

GOVT CLEARS GST: The government also cleared the Punjab State Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill, 2017. The Opposition said it would lead to price rise, while finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal said prices would fall and government earnings would rise ROAD CONNECTIVITY: Four district towns of Mansa, Muktsar, Fazilka and Ferozepur will be connected with 4 to 6 lane highways. CM to take up issue with the Centre

RAIL LINK: According to the CM, he had written to the Centre for rail connectivity between Patti and Makhu which will connect the Majha region with Malwa and then with Rajasthan

AIR CONNECTIVITY: The state government recently signed an MoU with Union ministry of civil aviation for implementing the regional connectivity scheme – UDAN, connecting four state airports — Bathinda, Ludhiana, Pathankot and Adampur — with Delhi. An aeronautical engineering college at Patiala to be will completed this year. Mohali airport to be expanded.

Rs 2 lakh waiver on loans for small, marginal farmers

Relief up for suicide victims’ kin | All truck unions disbanded | Rs 5/unit power for industry

Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh at the Punjab Vidhan Sabha in Chandigarh on Monday. Tribune photo: Manoj Mahajan

Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 19

Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh today announced a waiver of crop loans up to Rs 2 lakh for small and marginal farmers (up to 5 acres) and a flat Rs 2 lakh relief for all other marginal farmers, irrespective of their loan amount, paving the way for a total waiver of agricultural debts.Making the announcement in the Punjab Assembly, the CM said the move would benefit 10.25 lakh farmers of the state’s 18.5 lakh farming families, including 8.75 lakh farmers with land-holding up to 5 acres. “The initiative would provide double the relief announced by Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra,” Capt Amarinder pointed out.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)The decision is based on the interim report of an expert group, headed by eminent economist Dr T Haque, which was tasked with suggesting ways and means to help the state’s distressed farming community. To provide relief to the families of farmers who had committed suicide, the Chief Minister said the government had decided to take over their outstanding crop loan from institutional sources and to raise ex gratia from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh.In case of loans raised from non-institutional sources, the government has decided to review the Punjab Settlement of Agriculture Indebtedness Act to provide relief through debt reconciliation and settlement mutually acceptable to the lender and the borrower.The CM asked the Speaker to set up a five-member committee to visit families of suicide victims, ascertain the reasons for the suicides and suggest steps to prevent these. He told the Assembly that his government had already decided to repeal Section 67-A of the Punjab Cooperative Societies Act, 1961, to end auction (kurki) of farmers’ land.Meanwhile, the government has disbanded truck unions across the state. In the recent past, several Congress leaders have had bloody feuds with their rivals over wresting control of these unions.The CM also announced a freeze on power tariff for all types of industry at Rs 5 per unit —  one of the poll promises of the Congress government.    

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CM Sets exampleThe Punjab CM appealed to well-to-do farmers to give up power subsidy voluntarily. To set an example, he announced to give up subsidy on his own farm and appealed to his colleagues to do likewise.

Other key announcements

• Skills development university at Chamkaur Sahib, Ropar
• Wellness mohalla/ward clinics, health insurance for all
• Loan waiver up to Rs 50,000 for SCs/weaker sections
• New industrial hubs to come up in Sangrur and Khanna
• New Lokpal law to cover CM, ministers and bureaucrats
• Free textbooks for nursery & LKG students in govt schools

SAD-BJP left state in fiscal mess, claims White Paper

Newly-elected Deputy Speaker Ajaib Singh Bhatti takes blessings from CM Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday. Tribune photo: Manoj Mahajan

Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 19

The White Paper on the state’s fiscal condition tabled by the Punjab Government in the Assembly today states that the state is left with no money for development.It says against every Rs 100 earned, the expenditure is Rs 102, if all committed liabilities, including salaries, pension, interest on debt, power subsidy, are taken into account.The additional Rs 2 is raised by borrowings or by selling government property. Most alarming is the decline in capital expenditure.Against 92.18 per cent revenue expenditure the capital expenditure was just 7.82 per cent during 2016-17, which shows meagre spending on development.The state’s growth rate has been well below the national average since 2007-08 except in 2013-14. Punjab is far behind states like Bihar, Gujarat, Maharashtra, MP and Tamil Nadu. In fact, it is one of the slowest growing states in the country.The outstanding debt has risen to Rs 2,08,060.96 crore. The interest payment consumes a significant part of the revenue. The paper says the state has an unpaid liability of Rs 13,039 crore.Finance Minister Manpreet Badal claimed that Rs 1,747 crore worth of atta-dal was not given to beneficiaries, Rs 2,773 crore was not paid to the employees as dearness allowance, Rs 728 crore subsidy on power was pending and Rs 7,791 crore worth of bills were outstanding with the treasury.He accused the previous regime of indulging in smart accounting wherein the integrity of the Budgets in the last 10 years had become questionable.He announced that a special audit would be done to find out if loans raised by the government were in accordance with the norms. He termed the selling of government resources as an abuse of the system.Further accusing the previous government, Manpreet said the revenue generated by various levies was deposited in a separate corpus fund, instead of depositing the same in the Consolidated Fund of the state. The White Paper states corpus fund was spent without sanction of the Vidhan Sabha or auditing by the Comptroller Auditor General (CAG). It says the decisions were unplanned, scattered and against the constitution of these entities.

Cong now blames Centre for Rs 31,000-crore ‘food scam’

Amaninder Pal

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 19

In an apparent climbdown, the Congress has pinned the fault for the Rs 31,000 crore food scam by the SAD-BJP on the faulty procurement policies of the Centre.During its poll campaign, it had dubbed it as the biggest “food scam” but the White Paper doesn’t even hint that the gap was result of any scam. Rather, it has blamed the Centre for this huge liability of the state.The only major fault that the paper could find with the previous regime was its “ineffective presentation of state’s claims” and readiness with which the government had accepted the Centre’s offer to convert liability into a loan, which the state is bound to pay for the next 20 years.Another charge is that the Akali-BJP failed to make budgetary provisions to repay the amount to the Centre. Again, the charge doesn’t suggest any scam.In a 13-page chapter ‘Liability of Cash Credit Limit’ exclusively dedicated to this crucial issue, the incumbent government traces the genesis of the problem in “the difference between actual costs incurred in procurement operations and costs reimbursable as per the Provisional Costs Sheet (PCS).”Apart from payment of MSP, procurement exercise also includes expenditures like taxes, labour charges, transportation, milling charges, administrative charges and cost of gunny bags. All such elements are part of the PCS.The document itself admits that the actual cost of procurement is invariably more than expenditure cited in the PCS.“Due to non-reimbursement of the actual expenses, the gap had been increasing due to compound interest. The government didn’t make any budgetary provision for adjustment of such a gap which was finally made in the kharif season 2015-16”, reads the White Paper.Regarding the role of the previous government, it only added that the entire burden of settlement of outstanding accounts couldn’t have been put squarely on the state government without any contribution from the Centre or banks.“However, the previous government accepted the same, burdening the citizens with a huge debt”, the paper reads.

DCP (Crime) Gagan Ajit Singh addresses a press conference in connection with the arrest of robbers’ gang in Ludhiana on Saturday. Photo: Inderjeet Verma

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, June 17

The Ludhiana Commissionerate has claimed to have busted a gang of robbers with the arrest of three of its members. One ex-serviceman is also among the three robbers nabbed by the police.While addressing mediapersons at a conference here, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Crime, Gagan Ajit Singh, said the gang was busted by the special task unit (STU), led by Inspector Prem Singh.He said the accused had committed two major robberies in the past two months. Now, they were planning to strike a much bigger target. However, the timely tip off led to their arrest, he added.The accused have been identified as Nelson Masih, alias Sunny, a native of Gurdaspur, and presently, a resident of Sarabha Nagar, Harinder, alias Rocky (an ex-serviceman), and Parvinder Singh, alias Pav, both residents of BRS Nagar. The two accused, who are still at large, are Irshad Ali of Gurdwara Singh Sabha Road and Jaspreet Singh, alias Jassi, of Payal. The police also recovered one Scorpio (bearing registration No. PB10EP6456), a motorcycle, Rs 1.21 lakh in cash and one toy pistol from possession of the accused.DCP Gagan said during preliminary questioning it came to fore that on May 15, the accused first did a recce of the place outside the State Bank of Patiala. As they waited a turbaned man came out of the bank with cash and left on his scooter. When the victim reached Butari village, one of the accused threw chilli powder in his eyes and he fell from the scooter. The accused fled with the victim’s bag containing Rs 2.62 lakh in cash, added the DCP.In the second robbery reported on June 5, the accused stood outside the HDFC bank. The moment a man came out of the bank with cash, the accused started chasing him. They snatched a bag containing Rs 1 lakh in cash from the victim at gunpoint.The STU in charge, Prem Singh, said Nelson started living in Ludhiana after killing a man in Batala. He said Nelson met Irshad when he started working at Verka Milk plant here. Afterwards, Irshad left the job and started working in a saloon, located in BRS Nagar. Harinder, who had left Army, used to visit the same saloon.“After all the accused developed friendship, they choose to have a rich life style. They decided to commit robberies to fulfil their desire,” said Prem Singh. “We will take all the accused on a production warrant so that whereabouts of the other two robbers, who are still at large, can be known. More recovery of looted valuables and cash will also be made in the further probe,” he added.

Security personnel patrol a road in Darjeeling on Friday. PTI

Darjeeling/New Delhi, June 16

Violence and arson marked the second day of the indefinite shutdown in Darjeeling hills on Friday, with the Army and paramilitary forces patrolling the streets to help restore calm.

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The scenic hills were largely shorn of tourists as Gorkhaland stir threw normal life into utter disarray.

Security personnel took out route marches in the hills as the Army patrolled the areas around Patlebas and Singamari where a large cache of weapons, explosives and cash were recovered yesterday.

As Darjeeling resembled a garrison town, with security personnel in riot gear fanning across its length and breadth, the Centre today decided to put on hold sending fresh troops to help restore normalcy as the state government has not yet submitted its report on the situation prevailing there.

Scores of alleged GJM activists descended on a panchayat office in Mirik, 50 km from Darjeeling, and set it on fire, an official said. A primary health centre was also set on fire at Lodhama.

Six suspected Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) supporters were detained today for allegedly setting ablaze a forest department office at Tarakhola in Kalimpong last night, a government official said.

“The situation is still very tense. Anything can happen. We have taken out a route march for area domination at various places,” a senior police officer said.

The turmoil, which was set off by the state government’s announcement about introduction of compulsory teaching of Bengali language in schools, has begun impacting day-to-day life in the hills with schools, markets and even bank ATMs shut.

There were hardly any tourists at the mall and on streets, which used to be teeming with them at this time of the year.

Hotels, restaurants and small eateries were closed and there were hardly any buses which could take stranded tourists, who had chosen to stay back ignoring the call by GJM leader Bimal Gurung to leave the hill station.

“We are waiting for a bus since 5.30 am but not a single bus is available to take us to Siliguri,” Aninda Bhaduri, a tourist, said.

“I have practical exams in Siliguri but there is not a single bus to take me there,” Swati Rai, another tourist desperate to get away from the strife-torn hills, said.

Tourists from foreign countries, who were among those stranded, found it difficult to leave due to lack of transport.

“We are standing in queues since early morning without any food and water. The police said there is no bus service and cars are also not available,” said Ralph, a French national, who had reached Darjeeling yesterday with his trekking team.

Meanwhile, the Centre today decided to put on hold despatching additional paramilitary forces to Darjeeling as the state was yet to send a report on the ground situation four days after it was sought.

The 400 additional personnel, whom the home ministry had yesterday decided to send to Darjeeling at the request of the state government, will not be despatched immediately, an official said.

“We will take a decision on sending additional paramilitary forces only when we make an assessment of the prevailing situation in Darjeeling. It is possible only when we receive a report from the state government, which has not sent it yet,” a Home Ministry spokesperson said. The Centre had sought a report from the Mamata Banerjee government on June 13.

Though there was relative calm in the hills after yesterday’s widespread violence, Gurung, who has gone underground, asked the people in a video message to be prepared for the “final battle” for achieving Gorkhaland.

“I urge the people to get prepared for the final battle as the time has come for a do or die fight if we want to achieve our dream of Gorkhaland,” Gurung, whose party is an ally of the Centre’s ruling NDA, said in the message from an undisclosed location.

Gurung’s message comes against the backdrop of the police raid on his premises at Singhmari and Patlebas in Darjeeling yesterday, following which the GJM, which controls the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), gave a call for indefinite shutdown in the hills.

Police had seized over 300 weapons, including pickaxes, bows and arrows, explosives, night vision binoculars and cash during yesterday’s raids.

GJM general secretary Roshan Giri said, “Time for autonomy, GTA, DGHC is over. Now the fight will not stop until and unless our demand for Gorkhaland is fulfilled.” Gorkha Janmukti Morcha MLAs, meanwhile, called on West Bengal Governor K N Tripathi in Kolkata and alleged that the TMC government was trying to turn a political movement in Darjeeling Hills into a law and order issue.

GJM MLAs—Amar Singh Rai, Sarita Rai and Rohit Sharma from Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong respectively—met the governor at the Raj Bhawan here and apprised him of the situation in the hills.

They accused the TMC government of trying to turn a “peaceful political movement for a separate state of Gorkhaland into a law and order situation”.

“We have told the governor that the people who are indulging in arson are outsiders and have nothing to do with the GJM,” Rohit Sharma, one of the three MLAs, claimed after the meeting.

“We have requested the governor to inform the Centre about the situation in Darjeeling and the sufferings of people owing to the state government’s stance,” he said. PTI

BQ:

It is my understanding that Russia is well aware of India’s consistent position to address all outstanding issues with Pakistan bilaterally in an environment free of terrorism and violence. — MEA spokesperson

Simran Sodhi

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 15

India today dismissed Pakistan’s position welcoming the offer of Russian President Vladmir Putin to mediate between India and Pakistan. In a press briefing in Islamabad earlier today, spokesperson for the Pakistan Foreign office Nafees Zakaria said Pakistan welcomed Putin’s offer to ease tension between the two neighbours.India, however, was quick to reject the Pakistani claims and the official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs said no offer of mediation between India and Pakistan was made by Russia to India. “It is my understanding that Russia is well aware of India’s consistent position to address all outstanding issues with Pakistan bilaterally in an environment free of terrorism and violence.”Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had met Putin on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit held in Kazakhstan earlier this month.This is the latest in the exchange of words between India and Pakistan with relations going from bad to worse in the last year or more. Pakistan has also tried consistently to bring global attention to the Kashmir issue, which India maintains is a bilateral issue.Kashmir is an issue on that both countries have also been engaged in bitterly at the ongoing session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva. Pakistan has repeatedly pointed to the alleged human rights violation in J&K, which India has strongly denied pointing instead to the violations in PoK and Balochistan.The worrying part for India, apart from this latest development, is the growing Russia-Pakistan ties. While India has historically enjoyed warm relations with Russia, especially in the defence sector, there can be little denying the fact that Russia is steadily increasing cooperation with Pakistan.

Members of the Special Task Force come out of Inspector Inderjit Singh’s house after a raid, in Amritsar on Wednesday. Tribune photo: vishal kumar

PK Jaiswar

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, June 14

The Special Task Force (STF) here today confiscated an AK-47 rifle, two magazines and 30 rounds, besides documents, from the residence of tainted cop Inderjit Singh, who was arrested on Monday for alleged links with gangsters and drug smugglers.An AK-47 rifle had also been recovered from his house in Police Lines, Jalandhar, on Friday.During the search operation that lasted four hours, STF teams from Jalandhar and Amritsar also took away a digital video recorder of CCTV cameras. Though the STF officials here were tight- lipped on the issue, AIG Mukhwinder Singh confirmed the seizure. It is being ascertained whether the rifle was issued by the department or had been procured illegally. The police found no narcotics during their search, he added.The house was opened after breaking locks on the doors and almirahs. Inderjit was brought in a white SUV (sans number plate). He face was covered with an orange cloth.The teams from Jalandhar searched every nook and cranny of the palatial house located in Kishangarh locality inside Chatiwind gate area in the walled city. The raiding party also took locality president Gursharan Singh Namdhari as a public witness with it while the entire operation was videographed.After the operation, the SUV was taken inside the house and the confiscated material and documents were loaded in it. Inderjit was also taken away in the same vehicle.Rashpal Ghuman, AIG Counter Intelligence, said the investigation was in its initial stage and he could not divulge more details. He said teams have been sent to Chandigarh too.Namdhari said that the police took away a digital video recorder and some important documents with them.The police are investigating Inderjit’s links with Akali leaders. The police have confiscated his mobile phone on this count. Sources said the accused used to receive calls from Akali leaders for releasing anti-social elements arrested by him.

Video recorder, phone too confiscatedDuring the search that lasted four hours, Special Task Force teams from Jalandhar and Amritsar also seized a digital video recorder of CCTV cameras and some documents. To probe Inspector Inderjit Singh’s links with Akalis, his mobile phone has also been confiscated.  

Martyr Ravi Pal’s sons at Sarwah village in Samba. Tribune Photo: Inderjeet Singh

Dinesh Manhotra

Tribune News Service

Jammu, June 12

Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh today took serious note of the report that ex gratia was being denied to the family of Uri martyr Havildar Ravi Pal. He promised that he would personally look into the matter so that the case was disposed of at the earliest.As BJP ministers are facing criticism from the party for not sanctioning ex gratia to the families of the two Uri martyrs of the state, Nirmal Singh told The Tribune he would personally follow the case so that the martyrs’ families do not face any harassment in getting justice.Meanwhile, the BJP today issued a hard-hitting statement against its own government after The Tribune exposed the government’s apathetic attitude towards Havildar Ravi Pal’s family.The Tribune had on June 10 reported about the unending plight of Geeta Devi, wife of Havildar Ravi Pal, who has not been provided relief and has been subjected to the apathetic attitude of politicians and bureaucrats.“It is a sad commentary that Havildar Ravi Pal’s wife Geeta has been subjected to the apathetic attitude of bureaucrats and politicians,” said Prof Varinder Gupta, state BJP spokesman.Gupta said about eight months had passed since the 2016 Uri attack, but none of the bereaved families had received a penny from the government so far. He said though the BJP had on its own provided an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh each to the two families of the martyrs, the state government had not taken any decision on the compensation so far.The spokesperson questioned the policy of the state government which provides relief to the families of the terrorists and its apathy towards the families of the martyrs.“Is it because that they belong to the Jammu region and are serving in the defence services and were countering the attacks of terrorists for whom some politicians of the Valley have a sympathetic attitude?” he asked. BJP ministers in the coalition expressed their helplessness over the issue.“We have already taken up the issue before the higher-ups a number of times but nothing concrete has been done by the government,” said a BJP minister on condition of anonymity. He admitted that his senior colleagues in the government had failed to pursue the ex gratia cases.While BJP ministers have maintained a criminal silence on the plight of the martyrs’ families, state BJP president Sat Sharma told The Tribune that the bureaucrats creating hurdles in releasing the ex gratia to the families would be taken to task.

New Delhi, June 11External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today directed Indian Ambassador in the US Navtej Sarna to update Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh about issues related to safety and security of Indians in that country.Swaraj’s direction came after the Chief Minister, in a tweet, requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Swaraj to take up the issue of security concerns of Indians living in the US with President Donald Trump.“I have asked Sarna to update you on this,” Swaraj tweeted. Earlier, Amarinder said in a tweet, “Indians, Sikhs in US are not feeling safe, please take up their security with @realDonaldTrump on priority @narendramodi ji @SushmaSwaraj ji.”There has been a spate of attacks on Indians in several parts of the US in the past three months. A 26-year-old man from Telangana was shot at by an unidentified person in California on June 4.The Chief Minister called upon US President Donald Trump to be sensitive towards the concerns of India in this matter as the two countries were the world’s leading democracies, which needed to work together to promote the value of equality and tolerance. He told the White House that there was no place for such intolerance in a democracy, and the Trump government should take stringent steps to check such incidents. — PTI

Partial stay: PAN without Aadhaar would not be invalid till Constitution Bench rules on right to privacy

SC asked the government to take steps to ensure there was no leakage of data from the Aadhaar scheme.

New Delhi, June 9

The Supreme Court on Friday upheld the validity of law making Aadhaar mandatory for allotment of PAN and filing of Income Tax (I-T) return but exempted those without it for now until the larger privacy issue is decided.

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In effect, those who possess an Aadhaar card must link it to their Permanent Account Number (PAN) card and those who have enrolled and not yet got their Aadhaar card are also exempted from mandatory linkage and the penalising invalidation of their PANs if they don’t link it.

The apex court while upholding the validity of a fresh provision in the Income Tax (I-T) law making Aadhaar compulsory for allotment of PAN and filing of I-T returns imposed a partial stay on it till its Constitution Bench decides the right to privacy issue connected with it.

Read :  Won’t extend deadline on Aadhaar linking: GovtSC scholarships to be linked with AadhaarSC moved on Aadhaar-PAN link

Section 139AA of the Income Tax Act provides for mandatory quoting of Aadhaar or enrolment ID of Aadhaar application form for filing of income tax returns and making application for allotment of PAN with effect from July 1 this year.

A Bench comprising Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan, which upheld the legislative competence of the Parliament in enacting the law to this effect, said there was no conflict between the impugned provision of the Income Tax Act and the Aadhaar Act.

It said that PAN card without Aadhaar number would not be treated invalid till the Constitution Bench decides the larger issue of Right to Privacy.

The Bench said that previous transactions won’t be affected or nullified with partial stay on the new law till privacy issue linked to Aadhaar is decided.

Further, the Bench also clarified that there would be no retrospective implementation of the provision to invalidate the PAN for non-compliance of unique identification number under the Aadhaar scheme.

While reading the operative portion of the judgment, the Bench said, “We are of the opinion that till Article 21 (concerning right to privacy) of the Constitution is decided by the Constitution bench, a partial stay is required (on section 139 AA of IT Act).”

Upholding the validity of Section 139AA of the IT Act subject to the outcome of the batch of petitions before its Constitution bench which is examining if Aadhaar scheme infringes on the Right to Privacy and if there is threat of data leakage, the Bench said PAN holders already having Aadhaar have to link both.

The Bench clarified that it has not touched upon the issue of Right to Privacy and other aspects that the Aadhaar scheme also affects the human dignity which has to be decided by the Constitution bench.

However, the Bench asked the government to take appropriate steps to ensure there was no leakage of data from the Aadhaar scheme as apprehensions have been expressed that there was a possibility of the data being compromised.

“The government to take proper and appropriate steps and the scheme in this regard has to be devised at the earliest till confidence among the citizens that the data would not be leaked,” the Bench said.

The Bench rejected the contention that since the apex court has been passing orders time and again on the issue of Aadhaar, the government should not have come out with a provision in the I-T law to make UIDAI mandatory for the purpose of allotment of PAN and linking it with the ITR.

“We have rejected this (argument). We have also rejected that it violates Article 19 (1) (g) and Article 14 of the Constitution,” the Bench said.

The court had on May 4 reserved the verdict on a batch of petitions challenging section 139AA of the I-T Act, which was introduced through the latest Budget and the Finance Act, 2017.

The Centre had earlier said that the programme of PAN had become suspect as it could be faked, while Aadhaar was a “secure and robust” system by which the identity of an individual could not be faked.

While opposing the government’s move, the petitioners, including CPI leader Binoy Viswam, have contended before the Bench that the Centre cannot “belittle” the apex court’s 2015 order holding the unique identification number as voluntary.

They had argued that government should not have enacted section 139AA in the Act to make Aadhaar mandatory for PAN as the apex court’s five-judge bench order was clear that Aadhaar was voluntary and not mandatory.

However, Attorney-General Mukul Rohatgi had contended that Aadhaar was made mandatory for allotment of PAN to weed out fake cards which were used for terror financing and circulation of black money.

Rohatgi had said that with the implementation of Aadhaar, the government had saved over Rs 50,000 crore on various schemes to benefit the poor as well as pension schemes.

The Centre had also told the court that fake PAN cards were being used to “divert funds” to shell companies.

The Supreme Court had observed that it was yet to be “tested” whether Aadhaar violated protection of life and personal liberty granted under Article 21 of the Constitution, which was pending hearing for an authoritative pronouncement by a five-judge Constitution Bench. PTI

Partial relief: PAN valid even without Aadhaar

Maj Gen Mandip Singh, VSM, Deputy Commandant, takes the salute at the parade in Dehradun on Tuesday.

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 6

In the run-up to the June 10 passing-out parade at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, the Deputy Commandant and Chief Instructor’s parade was conducted at the IMA’s historic Chetwode drill square today. A total of 423 Indian and 67 foreign Gentlemen Cadets participated in it.Maj Gen Mandip Singh, Deputy Commandant and Chief Instructor of the Indian Military Academy, reviewed the parade. Complimenting the Gentlemen Cadets for the passing-out course for a good parade, Maj Gen Mandip Singh said the efforts of the faculty and hard work of the Gentlemen Cadets were quite evident from the crisp and coordinated movements. He said he was optimistic that the standards would further improve as we neared the final passing-out parade on June 10.He also complimented the Gentlemen Cadets for the hard work they had put in and for having finally reached the threshold to a world filled with challenges and responsibilities.